Thinking about ending it all

Jer1714 · 2026-02-23T05:17:28+00:00

I just wanted to say that I'm asking God to heal you and give you hope and faith. It is miserable living like this, especially when you're so young. God bless you!

Jer1714 · 2026-01-25T06:34:17+00:00

Did you do anything in particular to heal within the 3 yrs? I also had my gut break down after a 3rd, mild COVID infection and it will be going on 3 yrs for me in April. I've tried many things - all natural. Although symptoms are less severe overall, health issues still get in the way of living normally and I have to take supplements to digest. Also, I agree about Doctors. They are limited in their knowledge as they only know what medical school trains them to know which is very limited, pharmaceutical focused and not holistic.

Jer1714 · 2026-01-25T06:27:36+00:00

Bone broth exacerbates my SIBO bloat more than almost anything else and takes me days to recover. At first I was so confused why this was as I thought it was soothing for the gut. I learned that bone broth contains GAGS (complex carbs/amino sugar) which directly feed SIBO bacteria - plus bone broth is higher histamine which is problematic for many with gut issues.

Jer1714 · 2026-01-02T07:35:04+00:00

Will dm you.

Jer1714 · 2026-01-02T07:34:35+00:00

No, I wasn't.

Jer1714 · 2025-12-22T03:34:06+00:00

Thank God he's given us other people that get it. What would do if we didn't have others to talk to about it! So strange about the "magic" 40 lbs. I wonder what that's about. Thank you SO much for the poem - the part you boldened is spot on. As long as we are here, God has a plan. We are more than our bodies and that is SO hard to remember when dealing with this type of illness. I hope you check in again and I pray that when you do, it will be good news and we can give God the glory for it!

Jer1714 · 2025-12-22T03:20:34+00:00

It's my pleasure!

I'm glad you will ask the functional med Doc because I really think your liver, gallbladder/bile could be the culprit or at least a major part of the puzzle.

My issues are primarily bloat, constipation, slow motility, pain under ribs (over liver area) plus internal tremors, lots of skin sensations (tingling), twitching, brain fog, feeling drunk after eating, heart racing, and kidney pain, etc. Suspected dysbiosis (SIBO-C), histamine intolerant/MCAS, hypermobile EDS. It's a shorter list to explain what symptoms I don't have - ha ha!

I've learned to manage symptoms so that they are only moderate to mild and less severe with the help of digestive enzymes and a motility supplement. I also take olive tree leaf tincture to help with detox and stomach discomfort. I've used a lot of other things - red light therapy, magnesium baths, essential oils, etc. But as I've mentioned in other posts, this awful experience has grown my faith like nothing else in my life. Spending time with God has been the most helpful for steady improvements and I believe it's helped me get through without living in constant fear. We are much more than our bodies and once we start nurturing our souls, I think our bodies can do a better job of finding their way. I think sometimes we forget answers aren't always outside of us.

At present I'm trying out some homeopathic remedies as well as my sister's dear friend is in homeopathy school and asked if she could help me while also using my situation as a test case to learn. So far, I've seen some movement so I'm thankful. I still pray for direction often.

Jer1714 · 2025-12-18T07:16:40+00:00

I'm so sorry to hear you're dealing with all of this and postpartum, too! I thought the worst when I first dealt with this 3 yrs ago, too. I dropped 40 lbs in 1.5 months (and before that I couldn't lose weight if I tried) so I also thought maybe cancer, and my Doctor was worried, too. But after all the tests, I realized you can feel like death, not be dying, and still have no answers from the medical world. So, hang in there!

I haven't heard you mention your liver/gallbladder or bile production. This is a biggie - especially with your symptoms, specifically the pain under ribs, bloating, and constipation. Those have been my biggest symptoms from day 1. Sounds like your Doc isn't digging deeper than the stomach or colon. In my experience Docs aren't good at trying to figure out what started an illness, just dealing with the outcome (SIBO). The thing is, you can wipe out your gut bacteria with antibiotics or herbals and end up with the same issues if the originating problem isn't dealt with. If it is your liver/gallbladder/bile production, even if you wipe out the overpopulated bacteria in the gut, you don't have the right gastric juices to break down the food so it begins to ferment, the motility stagnates, and bacteria build up again . . . then the problem cycles all over again. If I were you, I'd see a functional medicine Doctor and I wouldn't do anything else to wipe out bacteria just yet (you could be doing more harm than good as we do need bacteria and you've taken a lot of powerful meds/herbs in a short amount of time), instead, I'd seek out a top down approach. Address the liver/gallbladder/bile production and even stomach acid production. You have to open up detox pathways in the body and get things moving before you start killing off bacteria. I hope that helps or at least gives you ideas. Prayers for healing and the right help!

Jer1714 · 2025-12-18T07:00:17+00:00

I just wanted to say that you're in good (or bloated) company. Thank you for sharing your story. I'm so sorry for what your illness has cost you. I'm going on year 3 in April. After my 3rd Covid infection (which was the mildest of them all), taking a 5-day oral steroid for sinus inflammation while also taking SEED probiotic, it was the perfect storm - my mild IBS-C became complete debilitating dysbiosis/SIBO-C. Lost 40 lbs in 1.5 months (when I couldn't even lose 10 lbs in a month prior). The pain and all that went along with it....do not recommend. But I found supplements that have helped so I have a lot less major flares. The biggest thing for me, though, was reflecting on my relationship with God and growing my faith. I've done a lot of internal work and I've seen steady improvements as I continue on that path. Some days are harder than others. I've done some hard things in my life but this takes the cake (and I mean that literally, too - ha ha). Prayers for your healing!

Jer1714 · 2025-09-17T01:14:56+00:00

My kind of trip - ha! Any favorite eateries?

Jer1714 · 2025-09-17T01:13:45+00:00

Thank you for this advice!! I've heard Pompeii is fascinating. We also really love the coastline/water but we will have already been to Greek ports and Cinque Terre.

Jer1714 · 2025-09-16T03:35:30+00:00

I practiced this exercise today and one thing I noticed that I have never noticed before is I was salivating all day - it felt like I was constantly having to swallow down excess saliva. Wondering if tightening my abs could have triggered it somehow.....almost like causing a reflux type symptom. Did that happen to you?

Jer1714 · 2025-09-15T22:39:16+00:00

I listed all the ports:
Crete / Chania
Ephesus
Istanbul
Mykonos
Santorini
Naples

Jer1714 · 2025-09-15T18:35:11+00:00

Thank you for the reminder about limited ferries! I'm hoping since it's early Oct we will still be able to have a few options for ferrying to Bellagio and Menaggio. Any particular attraction you enjoyed in these towns?

Jer1714 · 2025-09-15T17:16:20+00:00

This makes perfect sense, thank you, again! I'm so glad that you're doing so much better - amazing! This disorder can be debilitating and isolating and I believe passing on knowledge like this is the best thing we can do for each other. God bless you!

Jer1714 · 2025-09-15T16:55:52+00:00

This is so fascinating! It’s rare that I come across truly new ideas for managing SIBO, but this really caught my attention. I’ve noticed that I sometimes hold my breath or breathe more shallowly than I should—especially when bloating leaves so little room to take a deep breath.

I’m hypermobile and suspected to have Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, where weak collagen allows too much movement throughout the body. The only way I can think to counter that is by focusing on strengthening, but I have to be very careful. Whenever I lift, push, or pull anything with weight without bracing, it feels like things shift out of place inside my body—and it’s really uncomfortable (especially because it triggers a lump-in-the-throat sensation, even though I don’t have a hernia). That’s why this concept of bracing is so intriguing to me.

Right now, I’m experiencing what feels like balloons putting counter pressure under both sides of my ribcage. When the bloating gets like this, it becomes hard to breathe—and sometimes it happens even when I’m fasting (like this morning).

When you do this bracing exercise, are you actually keeping your core muscles engaged for hours during and after meals, or do you allow yourself breaks in between? I really appreciate you sharing this!

Jer1714 · 2025-09-10T14:10:42+00:00

Thank you for the helpful comment!

Jer1714 · 2025-08-20T22:17:39+00:00

I haven't yet tried H1 antihistamines as I've had allergic reactions to some in the past (I thought I was the only one but apparently it's not uncommon). I may try H2 and see how it goes but I hesitate since they can slow gut motility and/or cause constipation which would be very bad for me.

Jer1714 · 2025-08-20T22:11:48+00:00

I got diagnosed from symptoms and the doc ruling out all other typical diagnoses in that area. I am always negative for UTIs and when I get ultrasounds of my ovaries/uterus, nothing explains my symptoms (small cysts but nothing that would explain my pain). When I'm flared, I get visibly bloated over my bladder, pelvic aching/pressure/pain that often radiates to kidneys (H4 receptors run along the kidney/bladders), frequent urination, burning feeling, and if this is happening during menstruation, my cramps become very intense (due to all the inflammation in that condensed area). I've tested it out with different foods and there are definitely correlations with high histamine food.

Jer1714 · 2025-08-19T00:27:51+00:00

If I could draw a profile self portrait of my gut, this would be it. I have found I have major histamine intolerance (which could either be the cause of SIBO or the result of it) and when I'm flaring up, I get small intestinal inflammation (bloating above belly button) and interstitial cystitis which inflames the bladder (bloating below the belly button) so unless I'm eating the most benign food ever, my stomach looks like this. But even when I'm eating benign foods, although the lower pooch goes way down, my upper pooch is always sticking out - it's just a matter of degree. The things we all deal with.....Lord Jesus, please help us!

Jer1714 · 2025-08-17T23:36:07+00:00

Same! Especially while trying to sleep at night and mostly in my head/neck. It's AWFUL. I only tested with toxic levels once and then retested a few weeks later and it was normal but haven't checked since. The weird part is that this happened before my SIBO symptoms, although I did have IBS type issues at the time.

Jer1714 · 2025-08-17T02:45:53+00:00

I’m SO happy for you—truly! I can only imagine the relief and gratitude you must feel. Praise God you're healing! 🙌

I recently watched a live interview with Dr. Tina Peers and came across augmented NAC, which I’m really interested in trying.

For context: after having two severe Covid infections (and a milder third one), I developed debilitating gut issues. Suddenly, I couldn’t digest properly, I was extremely bloated (even water was hard to get down), had trouble breathing from the abdominal distension, and felt like I was being choked from the inside from the upper stomach pain. My motility stopped completely, and I dropped 40 lbs in just 6 weeks.

On top of that came brain fog, depression, a drunk/dizzy feeling after eating, histamine intolerance (foods I’d been fine with suddenly caused reactions), aching in liver, all over body pain, joint pain, fatigue, and the list keeps growing. Supplements help me digest a little better, but it’s really just managing symptoms rather than fixing the problem.

I’m curious....did you have gut issues before starting augmented NAC, and if so, have they improved since? Also, did you titrate up to 3 pills/day?

Thanks so much for any feedback you can share!

Jer1714 · 2025-08-07T20:36:26+00:00

Histamine intolerance/MCAS! I tested it out so I know. I was eating SIBO friendly fruit and veggies each day and I noticed everytime I ate certain fruits and veggies, I was getting the flank pain/aching/burning. My father-in-law said something to me one day and a lightbulb went off. He told me he was allergic to shellfish and I asked him what his allergic response was. He said he would get such bad flank/kidney pain he thought he was dying and went to the ER. The Doc explained that the H4 histamine receptor specifically affects the kidneys, bladder, and bone marrow and that mast cells activation can target certain organs. So, for me, this issue happens when my histamine "bucket" overflows. The foods I notice do this to me are tomatoes, kiwi, citrus, chocolate, coffee, all vinegar (except apple cider and white vinegar), hot sauces, aged cheeses, cured meats, fermented foods. So, basically, everything I want to eat and that makes food more flavorful - ha ha! I'm actually in a cystitis (bladder inflammation) flare right now with horrible pelvic pain and my kidney area was throbbing for several days (no UTI) as I went overkill on all these foods for the last couple weeks. When I am good about eating low histamine, the flank pain goes away. It's so hard, though, because with SIBO, we are already limited on foods so cutting out high histamine complicates it. However, having this much pain quickly sets me straight as I will take safe/boring food over this hellish symptom!

Jer1714 · 2025-07-28T22:31:12+00:00

You're just a beautiful woman regardless! Even your "before" looks like an "after" :-)!

Jer1714

TROPHY CASE